And wasn't prosecuted (probably) because the rapist's family was politically connected. There's no excuse for at least statutory under the facts as presented. Also. dude should probably avoid saying rape-y things on social media if he's still within the statute of limitations.

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Here's a depressing story that will bring back memories of the Steubenville rape case. It begins with a 14-year-old drunk girl getting dumped on her porch by the high school football player who had just allegedly raped her, and it ends with her family being driven out of town by an unsupportive community.

A horrifying story out of Missouri: A mother was run out of a small town after her daughter blacked out at a party filled with older high school athletes and was left, with clear marks of rape, on the front lawn of her home in freezing weather.

The Kansas City Star details how the small town of Maryville turned against a newly-arrived family after 14-year-old Daisy Coleman reported that an older athlete had sex with her while another older male videotaped, after she was given an alcoholic drink at a party that left her barely able to stand. Her friend, a 13-year-old, was also made to have non-consensual sex.

After a thorough investigation by the local police however, clearly implicating 17-year-old Matthew Barnett in the sexual assault, charges were inexplicably dropped by the prosecuting attorney. Barnett, coincidentally, is the grandson of a prominent former Missouri state representative.

Star reporter Dugan Arnett writes,

Sexual assault cases can be difficult to build because of factors such as a lack of physical evidence or inconsistent statements by witnesses. But by the time his department had concluded its investigation, Sheriff Darren White felt confident the office had put together a case that would “absolutely” result in prosecutions.

“Within four hours, we had obtained a search warrant for the house and executed that,” White told The Star. “We had all of the suspects in custody and had audio/video confessions.

“I would defy the Kansas City, Missouri, Police Department to do what we did and get it wrapped up as nicely as we did in that amount of time.”

But no prosecutions ever came. The charges were dropped by the prosecuting attorney who didn't believe the evidence was strong enough. He dismissed any idea that political influence had anything to do with his decision.

In the meantime, the town had already begun to turn on the Coleman family. Threatening phone calls and online threats were directed at the family. Melinda Coleman had moved to the town with her four children after her husband, a physician, had died in a car accident. She was easily targeted by the community for being an outsider.
The parent of one of the teens at the Barnett house that night was the only one to comment briefly to The Star: “Our boys deserve an apology, and they haven’t gotten it yet.”

In a later interview, Rice [the prosecuting attorney] called it a case of “incorrigible teenagers” drinking alcohol and having sex. “They were doing what they wanted to do, and there weren’t any consequences. And it’s reprehensible. But is it criminal? No.”

Robert Sundell, who represented Barnett, echoed that sentiment: “Just because we don’t like the way teenagers act doesn’t necessarily make it a crime.”

After the charges were dropped, things just got worse for Melinda and Daisy Coleman. Daisy has struggled with depression and attempted suicide. Melinda had to move away from Maryville and back to the town she had lived in with her now-deceased husband. In April, the house in Maryville she still owned burned down under mysterious circumstances.

And Matthew Barnett, the young man accused by Coleman of raping her? He's attending the University of Central Missouri and apparently having a great time:

In a recent retweet, he expressed his views on women — and their desire for his sexual attentions — this way:

that sucks but can you have statutory if everyone involved were minors? It certainly appears that this girl and her mom are being targeted by the community as a whole and that these young men are being enabled to act irresponsibly and with no consequences.

Blame the parents of the perps. Period. End of story. Prosecute the parents for this crap and it will stop happening

I'm so very very tired of arguing this point with other people. But how else will justice be served?

that sucks but can you have statutory if everyone involved were minors? It certainly appears that this girl and her mom are being targeted by the community as a whole and that these young men are being enabled to act irresponsibly and with no consequences.

Blame the parents of the perps. Period. End of story. Prosecute the parents for this crap and it will stop happening

I'm so very very tired of arguing this point with other people. But how else will justice be served?

Prosecute the parents who allowed these minors to drink too.

End of story and if you don't agree, kindly piss off.

You can prosecute the parents with a fine of some sort for their kids drinking underage. But I honestly think our laws are too leniant on minors. You make a dumb decision as a "minor", you should face the same consequences as if you were an adult.

Is murder any lesser of a crime because the person who murdered was under the age of 18? If you do the crime, you face the same punishment regardless of your age. That is the way it should be anyways.

Not saying rape is okay. It clearly is not. But what the hell is a 14 year old doing at a party, and why the hell did she get black out drunk? We can talk peer pressure, but no one made her get drunk (unless we're talking roofie drunk).

Back in college, I can remember false calls of rape happening a lot. Girls get drunk, sleep with someone they wouldn't normally sleep with, then cry rape the day after. Happened to a mate of mine. Nearly ruined his life as well. Then the girls story unraveled and she admitted finally that it was consensual.

Anyways, clearly a 14 year old shouldn't be out partying and drinking and getting drunk. You're just asking for trouble. Strong parenting.

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Originally Posted by oh_snap

You can prosecute the parents with a fine of some sort for their kids drinking underage. But I honestly think our laws are too leniant on minors. You make a dumb decision as a "minor", you should face the same consequences as if you were an adult.

Is murder any lesser of a crime because the person who murdered was under the age of 18? If you do the crime, you face the same punishment regardless of your age. That is the way it should be anyways.

I'm sure that you led a responsible, thoughtful and squeaky-clean life when you were a young teenager. Not. She was at a party because she's a teenage girl who wants to make friends and appear cool to her peers. She got blackout drunk because she has no idea how to drink responsibly yet.

It's scientific fact that people of that age haven't fully developed emotionally, mentally or physically, so I don't see the logic in expecting them to act as if they have.

You can prosecute the parents with a fine of some sort for their kids drinking underage. But I honestly think our laws are too leniant on minors. You make a dumb decision as a "minor", you should face the same consequences as if you were an adult.

Is murder any lesser of a crime because the person who murdered was under the age of 18? If you do the crime, you face the same punishment regardless of your age. That is the way it should be anyways.

Holding children as accountable as adults is the 2nd dumbest thing you've posted on this thread.

that sucks but can you have statutory if everyone involved were minors? It certainly appears that this girl and her mom are being targeted by the community as a whole and that these young men are being enabled to act irresponsibly and with no consequences.

Blame the parents of the perps. Period. End of story. Prosecute the parents for this crap and it will stop happening

I'm so very very tired of arguing this point with other people. But how else will justice be served?

Prosecute the parents who allowed these minors to drink too.

End of story and if you don't agree, kindly piss off.

I don't know the case law, but the statute for 1st degree statutory just mentions the vic's age, not the perp.

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A person commits the crime of statutory rape in the first degree if he has sexual intercourse with another person who is less than fourteen years old.